


Of night talks and decisions to make

by themysteriouslou



Category: Far Cry 5
Genre: F/F, Gen, Gender-Neutral Pronouns for the Deputy, Jess is mainly referenced by Mary May and the Deputy but it still applies, how to write titles, please excuse my shitty ending, what else
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-20
Updated: 2018-12-20
Packaged: 2019-09-23 10:30:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,199
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17078639
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/themysteriouslou/pseuds/themysteriouslou
Summary: Mary May is told of what happened at the Whitetail Mountains and decides to make a call to her not-so-secret crush (ft. the deputy taking their role as matchmaker of the county).





	Of night talks and decisions to make

**Author's Note:**

  * For [elusetta](https://archiveofourown.org/users/elusetta/gifts).



> I know how much you love this ship and wanted to help you to fill the tag so, uh, here it is. (It was originally a surprise but my dumbass side couldn't help it, I'm sorry).

In retrospect, Mary May should've known.

It all started with one of the deputy's visits to the Spread Eagle, every bit of them as exhausted as they were proud for the progress the Resistance had made in the county. Mary May couldn't help but feel the same: it was only a matter of time until the valley returned to their hands, until they took back the properties and supplies John Seed had "bought" over the years.

Until they avenged the loved ones the peggies took with them in their crusade. Mary May shook her head, blond hair spraying over her chest as she moved to greet the deputy in person, images of her family lingering in the back of her mind as a reminder of her previous thoughts.

"Deputy," she grinned at them, "I suppose you want the usual, ain't you?" 

Rook chuckled, darting their eyes from the window alongside them to her, "Thanks, Mae," a grateful smile lit up their wearied features as they rubbed the skin under their eyes to focus, "I'm starving."

"Casey will have it soon," the barkeep comforted, looking over her shoulder to seek confirmation from the cook. He raised his thumbs at her, mouthing the time it will take for the order to be up, "ten minutes, if you wait."

"Perfect."

"But in the meantime," Mary May took seat in front of them, her usually animated tone switching to a serious one, "Jerome told us you've been helping our folks in the mountains. How did it go?"

She didn't miss the way Rook's shoulders slumped slightly, leaning away from the table to give a quick scrutiny of their surroundings. There were a few people scattered through the bar enjoying their drinks, however, no one of them were close enough to hear their conversation. _Everything’s clear._

"What's the last thing you heard from the militia?" they asked.

"They kept losing men to Jacob Seed's hunters," she furrowed her brow, recalling the radio messages Jerome used to get from Eli before the cult blocked their only connection to the northern region of the county, "peggies were enclosing places associated with militia, even capturing people when they had the chance."

"It was worse than I expected." Rook's eyes glazed over and singled on a dust moot beside their hands, both on top of the table. Whatever they saw in the Whitetail Mountains, it was enough to bother them more than anything the peggies had done in the valley. "People are kept in _cages_ , Mae, like animals —I'm sure those were animal cages, considering there were Judges next to them. The peggies there have more training than John’s; they have stealth in their arsenal and definitely won't play around when it comes to shooting you on sight. They’re ruthless, just as their leader."

They lowered their voice until the words died down, staring at the table with a frown on their face, hands turning into loose fists. Mary May didn't doubt they were angry at the cruelty displayed before them—all of them were, but Rook must have felt the weight of it as part of their oath to serve and protect the people in the county.

She slid from her chair, hands palming the bottles under the table until she found what she was searching. A vodka bottle as well as two small glasses was put on the table, which awarded her a thankful look from Rook.

"Dutch kept me updated on every radio call he could catch from the region," they continued, as she poured the drink on the glasses, "once I crossed the border, he asked me to go check on his niece at the Baron Lumber Mill-”

Her eyes widened, "Jess was captured?"

It was like receiving a sucker punch to the stomach, except all attempts to take a breath were completely useless.

Mary May had known Jess Black for years. She had been a regular to the bar, back when her parents were out working and she hadn't anywhere to go. It had taken some time for Jess to open up, as distrustful as she was, but when she did, it was easy for Mary May to see the troubled and soft soul hidden under layers of conflict and harshness. Even when she ran away to live with her grandmother, she kept returning to the bar, if only to talk to her.

 _The bar was my sanctuary_ , Jess had told her once, _and you were the first that tried to understand me. You never gave up on me, so why should I give up on this place, on you?_

Those words, as well as the raw vulnerability revealed on her mien, touched something within her heart to such an extent that Mary May swore she'd always be there for Jess Black even if it killed her in the attempt. A quiet promise, one she kept close to her chest, of always cherishing her—full of anger, but oh so wonderful as she was.

"She was." Rook confirmed her deepest fear, lips drawing into a tight line while reaching for their vodka glass. "Not for long, though."

A sigh of relief left her lips, thoughts running wild in her mind. _Maybe I should give Rook free food deals after this disaster ends_. She could felt her muscles loosen up from the stiffness she had experienced mere seconds ago, and by instinct she raised her hands up to her face to soften the clenched muscles of her jaw, choosing to continue the talk lest Rook noticed something wrong with her.

"Was... was she okay?"

"Relatively unharmed, if we're speaking of physical injuries. Emotionally?" They have her a wry smile, "Jess was furious. She explained to me what Jacob's plans were while I followed her and rescued some hostages along the way. He's building an army, Mae," their eyes found hers, and there was strange glint in their eye which she recognized quickly. _Horror_ , "the Whitetails can barely defend themselves with the supplies they have now. The Wolf's Den is the only thing protecting them."

Mary May reached over the table and placed her hand on Rook's shoulder, squeezing it gently in support of the discouraging prospects laid in front of them. "We'll get out of this, Dep. Don't doubt it."

"Of course not." Rook sighed, drinking another mouthful of vodka before continuing their report. "While Jacob's training his men in the mountains, he left the command to his most direct subordinates to execute the holding of outposts and such. One of these subordinates was the... "man" in charge of the Baron Lumber Mill and the Quarry, although "monster" is a more accurate term for him."

"Who was he?"

"Jess called him "The Cook".

Mary May hissed. "Oh, _him_."

The deputy blinked, momentarily caught off guard by her words. "You've heard of him?"

"Who _hasn't_ heard of him?" Mary May's fingers curled around her vodka glass, disgust filling her chest at the memory of that man's actions. "Even here tales of his devotion to _culling the herd_ aren't quite as uncommon. Crazy motherfucker from what I've been told."

"You aren't wrong," a shadow fell over their features, the events of that day vividly playing in their mind over and over again as they recounted them. "Jess hated his guts, which is understandable, seeing he was the cause of the most traumatic episode she'll ever live."

"What did he do to her?" she was aware of how she had raised her voice considerably, along with the way her voice wavered between a protective and fierce tone, but it didn’t matter. Not now. “What happened?"

The deputy shook their head, dark expression shifting to an apologetic and sympathetic one. "It's Jess' story to tell, not mine. I'm sorry, Mae."

Her whole body deflated at their words, letting all her weight fall in the chain. She wanted to find Jess, wanted to check if she was okay, wanted to hold her in her arms, keep safe and sound and away from those who tried to harm her. Wanted to hear her story, to chase the pain away from her wounded heart.

But she couldn't, not yet.

"Jess killed him in the end," Rook said lowly, "but she wasn't relieved of her anger, she didn't feel any different from before. That's when she understood what Dutch had tried to tell her: revenge doesn't bring back what you've lost."

 _Revenge doesn't bring back what you've lost_. It made her head spin, consider the situation from a different perspective. She could see herself in Jess' shoes, could see her family in the corner of one eye, and John Seed's smirk in the other.

It alarmed her how dangerously simple it was to believe the anger that boiled deep within her would disappear once he was deal with, until all that was left of him was reclaimed by nature while his soul rot in hell. It was even easier to believe her pain would go away with it, that she would find peace in her parents' deaths and Drew choosing the opposite side of the destructive war tearing their county apart. That everything would return to how it had been, before the cult settled and started taking everything from them. Jess knew, and now Mary May did as well.

They had a lot more in common with each other than what she had thought.

Just as she was about to ask Rook about their other endeavors in the Whitetail region, Casey yelled from the kitchen about the order being done and waiting. The barkeep stood up from her seat and went to retrieve it, setting the dish in front of the deputy and watching with a little smile as their face lit up at smell of it. _I know the North has more than enough wild animals to satisfy the whole county if necessary_ , _but..._

 _I wonder when was the last time they ate a full meal without hunting for it first_.

She went to assist her other clients, trying to take off her mind from a teal-eyed archer whose whereabouts were unknown for her. Jess had always been restless and wild, couldn't leave an injustice happen if she knew she could prevent it. Surely she must be wandering in the forests, risking her life for the hostages and civilians the cult was threatening. _Is she eating well_? Mary May wondered, _has she found somewhere to stay the night?_

 _Is she thinking of me, just as I'm thinking of her_?

When she finished, giving out a sigh as she inspected the bar, she noticed Rook was getting up from their seat, collecting their bag and weapons along the way.

"You leaving, Dep?"

"Yup. I left Boomer at Nick and Kim's and I have to go to check on them before going to the Henbane." Rook slung their bag over their shoulder, making sure there wasn't anything they were leaving behind. "The mayor said the Jail was a safe spot for the Resistance members, so I guess that will be my next stop following this."

"Don't forget to go talk to Pastor Jerome while you're there."

"I won't!" They turned to leave, giving a few steps towards the door before stopping in their tracks. Surprised, Mary May saw their shoulders shaking slightly as they looked at her over their shoulder, a shit-eating grin present in their lips.

"Oh and, Mae?" Rook said sweetly, hands searching deliberately slow through their pockets until they found what they were looking for. Mary May swore there was an evil twinkle in their eyes, observing her possible reaction with hardly restrained glee, as they handed her a radio that they must have picked as a backup in case the one they had stopped working. "You should contact her, y'know. Jess told me you two were close. She could use some comforting and encouraging words from you, don't ya think?"

The barkeep froze, feeling the heat bloom in her cheeks. "If you don't get outta my bar in ten seconds so help me God, not even the Seeds will find you, Rook."

The door closing with a subdued thud, as well as the amused chuckle that could be heard from outside, were the only replies to her threat. Even if she was joking, Rook knew Mary May was capable of delivering what she promised and they preferred to take preventive steps away from the bar. Just in case, of course.

What's life without some risks, after all?

Mary May stared at the door, disbelief painted in her face for all to see. _That rookie_ , she took the lone and empty glasses from the corner of the table, cleaning them distractedly. _I can't believe they had the gall to tell me that_.

She should've known Rook would notice and tease her for her crush on Jess. It was expected from them, part of their lighthearted manner of attempting to nudge her to have something from herself following the tragedy and death she experienced in the past months.

Perhaps… Perhaps they were right.

Her blue eyes darted to the radio they gave her, considering her options.

_I have to make one last radio call before closing the bar. Then... we'll see._

**Author's Note:**

> Probably will be posted on tumblr. I'll edit and add it later. Also, if you see I used accidentally "he/his" or "she/her" for the deputy please tell me.


End file.
